Ecological monitoring of the impact of agrochemical plant protection products on the adjacent areas of farming enterprises in Ternopil region

Abstract

The article presents the results of ecological soil monitoring on the territories adjacent to agricultural storage facilities used for storing agrochemical plant protection products in the village of Vyshnivchyk, Ternopil region. The article is based on the study of the ecological monitoring of soil conditions on the territories adjacent to the areas where agrochemical plant protection products are stored. In most cases, these areas do not meet environmental and sanitary standards, posing a potential threat to the environment and the community's health. Inadequate storage conditions, which do not comply with the existing standards, release toxic residues from unused agrochemicals into the soil, water sources, and the air. Consequently, there is a risk of poisoning for both humans and animals. This study also includes an analysis of the composition of agrochemical substances from previous years on the territory of Vyshnivchyk village, Ternopil region (the territory of 'Denys K' Farm). A sheltered storage space near the village of Vyshnivchyk has been operating for more than 30 years. It was constructed in 1978 according to the standards of that time. Both bulk and liquid chemicals have been discharged into the quarry. The problem is further complicated because the landfill has no owner. It is unknown which specific toxic chemicals are present in the abandoned landfill. According to the accompanying documents, 465 tons of dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), over 200 tons of hexachlorane, and 7 tons of mercury and arsenic substances have been accumulated there. According to the results of the conducted agrochemical survey, the soil is characterized by a weakly acidic reaction (soil type – leached chernozem (black soil), coarse-silty, light-loamy, soil pH = 5.9; humus content – 3.6 %). Due to wind and water diffusion (pollutant dispersion up to 30 meters from the storage was detected), agrochemicals near the storage facility had the following content: 2,4-D amine salt (0.35), simazine (0.01–0.05 mg/kg), HCH (0.02-0.14), DDT (0.03–0.10), no detected methaphos, but present in the composition (0.19), no detected trichlorfon, but present in the composition (0.10) mg/kg. The productivity and stability of the ecosystems are significantly disrupted within a radius of up to 50 meters from the storage facility site, which hurts the biogeochemical cycling of substances. Therefore, the low presence of plant protection chemical residues near the storage facility in the village of Vyshnivchyk can be attributed to the fact that these pesticides were initially stored in the adjusted facility. However, over time (since the warehouse was established in 1978, and the containers have deteriorated), they have migrated into the soil beyond the storage area.